True story (unfortunately): Two weeks ago, when I got on a bike for the first time after a six- or seven-year hiatus, two teenage girls in my neighborhood laughed at me from their porch.
Wait, that’s not even really the full truth. They came out of their house, presumably after seeing me struggle with even basic gear changes and the art of balance on the street in front of their window, then they laughed at me. They didn’t even really make much of an effort to hide it.
Hey, it probably was funny, so how mad can I be? At the time, mad enough to try to appear casual while pedaling away from them, but now that a week and a half have passed, it’s not a big deal. I probably do look sort of hilarious on the bike, considering I’m significantly overweight and suck at bicycling.
So, why the heck is a guy who generally dislikes physical activity as much he loves carne asada burritos for lunch and spends all day sitting at a desk staring at a computer on a bicycle to begin with? A good question and one I’ve been asking myself every time I try to ride a few miles on that infernal thing, but since my wife works at the local nonprofit Tu Nidito and one of their biggest fundraisers each year is El Tour de Tucson, I’m going to ride 42 miles as the slowest person in a pack with half of Southern Arizona. This might be the last thing I ever do, but hey, if I can raise some money for a program that helps grieving kids in the area, it seems worth pushing myself a bit.
While I struggle to push myself to a distance of ten miles this weekend (and try to block out my mind the fact that I still am, at my best, still less than a quarter of a way to the distance I’ll be riding in November), at least, I can think of Aaliyah, the kid that I’m “riding” for and how Tu Nidito helped her when she lost an older brother. What she’s gone through is a lot harder than some fat guy trying to ride a bike 42 miles by far.
This article appears in Sep 26 – Oct 2, 2013.
Good story! Have fun on the ride, the victory at the end of 42 miles great, and life wouldn’t be nearly as interesting if we all didn’t get a bit embarrassed at times!!
Recently donated to your wife’s work’s fashion fundraiser event. I believe in the work Tu Nidito is doing. My husband is trying for get back on his bicycle as well and for the same reasons as you. After telling this story to him, it is our opinion that you just ignore the immaturity and pedal on. You’re heart is in the right place.
Just in case you want to help Tu Nidito, but don’t want to help Dan, you can donate to his friendly rival here: tunidito.kintera.org/rideforachild/michael…
You need anyone to ride with? It’s amazing how quickly the miles fly by when someone’s there to help you. Lemme know if you want a volunteer coach – Mike knows me.
This was a great story! You will do great….I will be with you at the end being the slowest riding the 60 miles for my child. 🙂
You could have trained with one of several groups in town to help build endurance and confidence. Please consider it for for next year, Dan. It will make a huge difference. Best of luck in this year’s Tour!